Could row over theatre's future stop £9 million regeneration plans?
Both sides are calling for the other to show 'more compromise' as the future of the theatre space at Newton Abbot's historic Alexandra Cinema hangs in the balance.
Last updated 12th May 2021
The venue , which is used for three weeks a year as a theatre and includes a fly tower and orchestra pit, is due to be turned into a permanent 'shared space' under plans to transform the market square and food hall.
Teignbridge Council has voted to accept the £9.2 million Future High Streets Funding from the Government to pay for the regeneration - but campaigners fighting to preserve the Alexandra say they do not support the plans.
Andrew Malcom, from the friends of the theatre group, said: "We are fighting to preserve a dedicated theatre space and permanent auditorium for Newton Abbot, and the councils plans/vision/concept, call it what you like, does not come anywhere near to this."
Our full interview with Teignbridge Council Leader Alan Connett
In an open letter from Teignbridge Council Leader Alan Connett, he warned: "I was astonished to see, and have confirmed that in reality, there is now a wish to reject or not take the £9.2m Future High Street Funding.
"If that vital funding is lost, I am sure there will be many other market towns which will cheer... as they will likely benefit.
"For Newton Abbot, it will mean no new multi-screen cinema, the Alex will continue to be used as a theatre for just three weeks a year.... and the ongoing risk to jobs and town centre traders continues without the increased footfall and visitors that the new facilities would have enabled."
Andrew Malcolm, chair of Friends of the Alexandra Theatre, said: "As we have made extremely clear from the outset, the Friends of The Alexandra Theatre have always supported the regeneration of the town and the funding from Central Government. Where we and the council diverge is over the detail in the plan for the Alexandra Theatre. The plans submitted were done so without consultation with any arts group from the town or district, instead drawing on homogeneous plans that have been installed in other fading Market Halls around the country. There is scant regard for true arts in the plans, merely a nod to some sort of entertainment space.
"I note, in your exceptionally recent Lib Dem campaign video on the future of the Alexandra Theatre (rather misleading, as it visually alludes to more of a theatre space than the plans actually include), that you state the new build would allow for a 52 week a year entertainment programme, however your current plans do not meet even a tenth of what is required for anything more than a one-off single performer show plus the space is needed each day as a market. This is simply not good enough.
"To that end, I would like to remind you again of our wish that your plan creates a 52-week a year auditorium with full stage, light and sound, and seating, of which our alternative plan fits the brief, builds the café/bar in your plans, and still allows you to remodel the Market Hall. That is our position and without this agreement we cannot support the plans as they currently are, indeed if the funding does not happen and we return to the status quo then this is preferable to the plans currently in place."
The Friends group also responded by saying: "You say you support the regeneration of the town and funding from central Government which, on first reading, implies you support the Future High Street Fund grant.... but on closer reading your words are more open ended and fall far short of that.
"In your final paragraph you say if the funding doesn’t happen then the status quo would be preferable. So, no new multi-screen cinema, no improvements to the Market Hall, the plan to bolster Newton Abbot’s economy and with it, that of the district, falters.
"You know we had committed to continuing discussions about the details, very mindful of the clear issues you and FoTaT colleagues had raised in our meetings. It perhaps seem to me that you wish to discuss ‘The Alex’ only on terms you set out and are willing to risk the significant £9.2 million investment the Future High Street Fund offers the town.
"As you observe in a roundabout way, if the offer of the Future High Street Fund grant of £9.2 million is lost to Newton Abbot, the Alex will continue to be a 3 week a year theatre. You will have had your way.
"The cost will be in jobs, the economic vitality of the town and the loss to the cinema-going community and so much more."
For more about the Friends group click here
For more about the Teignbridge Council plans click here
A petition to save the Alexandra can be found here